1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a transmission control device which is attached to, for example, packaged foods.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, code images, such as a bar code, have come into widespread use for managing goods. However, in this case, it is necessary to confirm the attachment position of the bar code in order to read it, which deteriorates usability.
Therefore, in order to improve the usability, a method of processing, for example, merchandise management information by a wireless communication technique using a wireless transmitting device, such as a so-called RFID tag, has been studied. When the RFID tag and household appliances having information processing devices integrated there into are spread, in the near future, the following technique will be realized: the RFID tags are attached to articles of food stored in a refrigerator, information of the RFID tag is read out, and the read information is transmitted to, for example, a mobile phone through a network. For example, JP-A-2003-325074 discloses a system for managing unique information of eggs contained in a package.
However, in actual merchandise management, it is preferable to separately discriminate individual goods, and a plurality of individual goods may be contained in a package (a package of goods).
When the package containing individual goods is opened, all contents contained in the package may be used at the same time, or some of them may be used. However, in the case in which some of the contents are used, a technique for managing the remaining contents using RFID has not been considered yet.